novelraw Chapter 123 : Chapter 123
Chapter 123 : Chapter 123
Chapter 123: The Overwhelming One, Bakan (9)
Kargrar.
To the Kandahr Tribe, it was a sacred ritual, a unique right reserved exclusively for them.
Only those with Kandahr blood and the status of chieftain or higher could issue a duel challenge.
‘And yet… Duke is a Kandahr? The heir of a tribe, no less?’
If Duke’s words were true, he had the right, at this very moment, to challenge Bakan to a Kargrar duel.
But neither I nor anyone else in the castle could easily believe Duke’s claim.
After all, Duke had always been known as an outsider who crossed the continent and settled in the Kaien Kingdom.
‘Come to think of it, I’ve never heard anything about Duke’s origins or lineage. I assumed he was from the continent…’
I wasn’t alone in this.
Most people shared the same assumption.
No one knew much about Duke’s past.
Thus, the Kandahr Tribe vehemently denied his claim.
“Utter nonsense! Don’t think you can fool us with some half-baked story! The White Hawk Tribe went extinct long ago!”
“Lord Bakan, don’t be deceived. We must not stop the attack now!”
Despite Drenbalk and Morcal’s protests, Bakan, intrigued, questioned Duke.
“You said your name is Duke? Can you prove your claim?”
Duke stepped forward confidently.
“Of course. Olandu Farman, the 17th chieftain of the White Hawk Tribe, was my great-grandfather. And the proof that I am of the White Hawk Tribe is this!”
Duke tore off his shirt, revealing a vivid tattoo of a white hawk above his beating heart on his left chest.
A white hawk with wings spread wide, crying fiercely.
Drenbalk and Morcal’s faces hardened at the sight.
“That’s…!”
Anyone could carve a white hawk tattoo.
But to perfectly replicate the exact design of an extinct tribe’s tattoo, including its hidden patterns, was an entirely different matter.
It was evidence of a deep connection to that tribe.
Moreover, if the bearer was a direct descendant of the tribe’s chieftain, the significance was even greater.
But Bakan believed Duke not because of the tattoo, but because of the powerful aura he’d felt during their clash.
“Haha! As expected. No one without Kandahr blood could wield such strength.”
Duke’s past or story held no importance to Bakan.
All he craved was a strong opponent.
“Very well, sole heir of the White Hawk Tribe. I accept your duel.”
If Duke was truly the last heir of the White Hawk Tribe, he effectively held the status of a chieftain, and for Bakan, who valued tribal traditions, there was no reason to refuse a Kargrar proposed by a Kandahr.
However, Morcal, the strategist, disagreed.
For him, prioritizing the flow of the battlefield and victory in the war, accepting a duel at this moment was unwise.
“Lord Bakan, even if he is of the White Hawk Tribe, we are in the midst of war. There’s no need to accept a duel…”
“Morcal, do you dare question my honor? Kargrar is the sacred tradition of our Kandahr Tribe.”
As Morcal faltered and fell silent, Bakan continued.
“What are you so afraid of, Morcal? The enemy is already cornered. Are you scared of the Duke?”
“That’s not it.”
Morcal denied it immediately, but the Duke’s presence was indeed a variable for them.
As a strategist, Morcal wanted to end the war cleanly, without any variables.
Bakan, seeming to understand his perspective, paused to think, then nodded.
“I understand your point. I can’t consider only my honor during a war. Fine, shall we hold the duel this evening, at sunset?”
Originally, Kargrar was a traditional ritual requiring a day—or even a week—of preparation.
Yet Bakan’s willingness to forgo such traditions and proceed with the duel left Morcal with no grounds to object further.
‘If Lord Bakan steps in, the duel will end quickly. We can besiege the castle, and once the duel is over, launch a full assault.’
Having calculated his strategy, Morcal bowed deeply to Bakan.
“Understood. I will prepare the Kargrar ritual immediately.”
Bakan smiled with satisfaction and shouted to Duke.
“Duke Farman! I accept your duel challenge, so our warriors will halt the battle and withdraw until then!”
The soldiers of the Kaien Kingdom, driven to the brink, sighed in relief at the brief respite, but that relief was tinged with immense guilt and unease.
Because this short pause meant the sacrifice of one man.
Yet Duke, the one to be sacrificed, smiled brightly as if unbothered, turning to the soldiers and me.
“Why so glum? All I have to do is defeat Bakan, right?”
Duke laughed heartily, but no one could join in his laughter.
Not even I.
***
A few hours of truce.
Though a brief reprieve was granted, no one could relax or sigh in relief.
Exhaustion seeped into their bones, and anxiety still weighed heavily on the entire camp.
Amidst this, I cautiously resumed conversations interrupted by the battle.
The Executor cadets surrounded me, bombarding me with questions.
“Young Master, where have you been?”
“Yeah, why did you disappear and only show up now?”
All eyes were on me.
I gave a wry smile and shrugged.
“Someday, I’ll gather everyone I know and tell the full story.”
Quietly, but briefly, I recounted what I’d experienced at the Coast of the Dead.
“My goodness… such a place actually exists?”
“It sounds like a lie…”
It was an unbelievable tale.
But without such an explanation, my disappearance made no sense, so they could only nod silently in acceptance.
My eyes, at least, weren’t those of a liar.
“Still, seeing you all alive when I returned is a relief. Oh, but I don’t see some of the instructors. Where’s Instructor Nell? He should’ve arrived before me with the cadets.”
“Ah…”
Jack’s reaction made my heart sink, fearing an accident en route.
“What? Did something happen?”
“Well, Instructor Nell and the cadets did arrive earlier, but they were all gravely injured. The soldiers supporting the castle carried them in on stretchers.”
“That happened…”
“I heard they were on the brink of death for the first few days. No one could ask what happened, but now that I think about it, they must’ve been with you. I don’t know their current condition.”
“I see.”
Now I understood their reactions.
They hadn’t known about the kidnapping of the academy’s instructors and cadets or my return.
“At least they’re alive, which is a relief.”
I let out a breath of relief, but there was no time for deeper conversation.
The camp was filled with the groans of the wounded, and the exhausted soldiers’ faces were shadowed with despair.
This fleeting peace was merely a moment to catch our breath before the next wave.
In this heavy atmosphere, the cadets, especially, felt the situation’s gravity most acutely.
“Young Master… what happens to us now?”
At Jack’s question, I paused, then answered calmly.
“Well. The Dean has bought us precious time, but there’s little we can do now. The castle is completely surrounded by Kandahr warriors.”
The best we could do was recover our bodies and minds during this brief truce.
“But… I had no idea the Dean was a Kandahr.”
His words carried complex emotions.
Having trained under Duke and respected him deeply, Jack seemed unable to easily accept that Duke bore the blood of their enemy.
“It doesn’t change anything. The Dean is the Dean.”
“I know. I’m just worried.”
“The one you should be worried about is someone else.”
“You’re not even a little…”
Before he could finish, the sound of the sturdy iron gate leading to the inner castle slowly opening echoed.
―Creak.
As the gate opened, the soldiers held their breath, and soon, everyone knelt in unison.
The King of the Kaien Kingdom, Gaspar Kaien, had personally arrived at the battlefield’s nearby command post.
“His Majesty the King has arrived!”
Before the iron gate, in the central assembly point still thick with the aftermath of battle, commanders and soldiers stood in formation.
The King, clad in a majestic blue cloak exuding authority, passed through them slowly.
He surveyed the surroundings silently for a moment, then, closing his eyes briefly as if in meditation, walked toward Duke, who sat in quiet contemplation.
“Dean!”
At his call, Duke rose and rushed to him.
“Your Majesty!”
The King approached swiftly, raising his voice.
“I’ve heard everything—who you are, where your bloodline begins!”
“Yes…”
“But I don’t care about that! I came to ask why you made such a reckless choice.”
“Your Majesty…”
“Don’t you know that fighting Bakan could mean your death?”
Gaspar’s eyes were filled with heartfelt concern.
More than Duke’s identity, he feared losing a loyal vassal to a deadly gamble.
“I know, Your Majesty. I know death is likely…”
“And yet? Knowing that, you still intend to go?”
“This duel won’t end the war or save everyone. But if sacrificing my life creates even a slight chance to save those here, I’ll step into the duel a hundred, a thousand times.”
“Duke…”
Gaspar was at a loss for words.
He wanted to order Duke locked away right then and there.
But the resolve radiating from the man before him burned like an unquenchable flame.
“I… how am I so powerless… to send the loyal vassals protecting this kingdom to their deaths one by one.”
“Don’t say that. Your Majesty is the most remarkable leader I’ve ever seen in my life.”
The King closed his eyes and fell silent for a moment.
Then, lowering his voice, he spoke his final words.
“Duke. This is my first and last command to you.”
With a trembling hand on Duke’s shoulder, he said, “You must… survive.”
Duke bowed his head.
“I will obey that command.”
***
Time passed mercilessly, and the appointed hour of the duel finally arrived.
The soldiers within the castle, having taken a brief rest, seemed to have regained some composure.
They all gazed toward the castle gate, where Duke stood.
“I’m off, then. Take care of this place, Rona.”
“Please, stay safe.”
Rona bit her lip and raised her hand.
The drawbridge spanning the moat began to lower slowly.
―Rumble.
When the bridge was fully lowered, Duke took the lead, followed silently by me and a few escorts.
“…”
No one spoke as we crossed the bridge.
―Step, step.
At the bridge’s end, the Kandahr warriors had prepared a dueling arena.
And within it, Bakan sat with his greatsword slung across his back, arms crossed, waiting for Duke.
“Hahaha! Come, heir of the White Hawk!”
His voice thundered across the field.
Duke walked forward silently, and I watched his back quietly.
‘Duke…’
Even now, I wanted to stop the duel, to grab him and drag him back to the castle.
But then, a vivid memory surfaced.
That day, after losing a fight, when I offered him my hand, he had said:
―A man’s decision needs no pity!
Then, and now…
Duke had chosen his own path.
The only thing I could do was one thing.
Believe in Duke.
That was the best I could do now.